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Word Cousins

Three short lessons on words that share an ancestor: one old root in many languages, the false friends that only look related, and the cousins a Vietnamese family already speaks.

For grown-ups, from what CognateForge teaches children at Spark & Anvil.

  1. Lesson 1One root, many languages
  2. Lesson 2False friends
  3. Lesson 3Cousins across Asia
At the table · two or more, ideally speaking different languages

The cousin hunt

You'll need: paper and a pencil.

  1. Write ten everyday words in English: night, mother, water, star, new, two, three, name, heart, salt.
  2. Each person writes the same words in any other language they know.
  3. Circle the pairs that look like cousins.
  4. Check one circled pair together in a dictionary: cousin, or false friend?

Print the guidebook (all lessons + the table activity) →